I think Steelman is better (and not guilty to boot). Washington porkers backed the congressman.
A pity there is now an open house seat and treasurer’s office.
Also that Matt Blunt quit.
Jay Nixon no doubt wishes to be a national figure.
I think Blunt’s swift exit was pretty gutless on his part. Nixon isn’t invincible. He did lose running for the Senate. Hulshof is at a disadvantage, but he can still pull off an upset with some tough campaigning (he did manage to dispose of the well-entrenched Harold Volkmer in a poor GOP year). It also looks like we got the best candidate for his House seat, Blaine Luetkemeyer, and the Dem primary was pretty brutal.
We probably will hold Steelman’s office, and more than likely will also take Nixon’s open AG office (which we haven’t won in 20 years). The Republican had no primary opponent and the Dems had another vicious primary, with a backstabbing weasel former RINO (Chris Koster) declaring victory before it was certified. Koster’s ex-wife spent nearly a quarter million airing ads against him, so this guy is MAJOR damaged goods if his primary win holds.
Although it’s a long way off, Steelman might be better utilized in 2012 to run against the dreadful Claire McCaskill.
I don’t think that anyone I voted for won yesterday — haven’t checked the local stuff, but unless they were upopposed on the R ticket I didn’t pick a winner! ARGH!